Practising what we Preach: Transparency and Accountability in the Indian NGO Sector

Posted on: November 06 2009 | Author: megha | Comments:1

Practising what we Preach: Transparency and Accountability in the Indian NGO Sector - Mr. R. Suresh

There is a worrying tendency of the state to increase its control over NGOs through the tightening of tax regimes, issue of 80G approvals and extensions, and other measures that limit and restrict NGO expression to narrow yet safe avenues that rarely threaten the establishment. Ironically though, the state continues to increase its dependence upon the non-governmental sector for the actual delivery and reach of its programmes to the poorest. There is constant pressure on NGOs to take up the threads of delivery, representation and monitoring of the state’s work. The tension thereby created is not necessarily a creative one. Often motives are misjudged, and stances on issues are mistaken for rebellion or resentment, and consequently dealt with through the power of the state to regulate non-governmental activity.

At the Public Affairs Centre, we have constantly striven to build bridges across different stakeholders working towards the same end, namely, the alleviation of suffering through the improvement of service delivery. We have done work in the recent past on education, health, corruption, public service monitoring and public policy research, among other things. The common thread running through all these activities is that we strive in all circumstances to promote the idea of constructive engagement – working closely with those in development administration and the executive who desire to improve the lot of their fellow citizens, in the mutual belief that the linked and synergized capacities of state and non-state actors will result in better results with regard to the management of development projects and programmes. PAC has now embarked on a new phase of collaboration with the government with fresh citizen initiatives in the monitoring of public programmes such as road work, municipal department service delivery, maternity homes and the work culture of the police force. The increasing demand from the government for our support for such work lends credence to our belief that constructive engagement is the way forward in successfully bridging the governmental and non-governmental divide.

When we consider constructive engagement in the context of the state’s increasing regulation of NGOs, it is the responsibility of NGOs to send positive signals that enhance their credibility. Towards this end, PAC has strongly advised its partners to obtain formal and full accreditation from Credibility Alliance, a network of NGOs that promotes transparency and accountability in the working of NGOs through self-disclosure. Such measures will help to promote confidence within the sector and among all development workers that the motives of different actors are pristine and worthy of support in nation-building causes.

Raghavan Suresh is Director of Public Affairs Centre and can be contacted at Director@pacindia.org